Four attendees were stabbed and one shot late Monday afternoon during the annual Caribbean J’Ouvert Festival in Brooklyn, police say.
Fire officials confirmed two victims of the stabbings and the victim of the shooting did not suffer life-threatening injuries from the attack.
The physical state of the other two stabbed is currently unknown.
The armed onslaught reportedly broke out near 672 Eastern Parkway, while the stabbings took place outside the Brooklyn Museum at 200 Eastern Pkwy.
Attendees were spotted jumping through crowds amid the chaos while some were knocked over and left bloody during the crowded carnival.
The J’Ouvert Festival, which attracted tens of thousands of people, already kicked off this morning under heavy security watch.
The annual celebration of Caribbean culture has been plagued by violence in recent years. Two people were murdered at J’ouvert last year, despite an increased police presence, and in 2015, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s aide Carey Gabay was killed by a stray bullet.
While just last night, four people were shot in Brooklyn – one just a few blocks from the parade route.
The result is that this year’s event festival took place with heavy security including an increased NYPD presence, police barricades and metal detectors.
An unidentified man was shot twice at the festival Monday afternoon
The onslaught reportedly broke out near 672 Eastern Parkway
The man who was shot was not said to have suffered life-threatening injuries
The J’Ouvert Festival kicked off this morning under heavy security after four people were shot overnight in Brooklyn
Revelers are searched by police officers during a Caribbean street carnival called J’ouvert on September 4, in New York City
A police officer confiscates a bottle of alcohol during the J’ouvert Festival. Alcohol has been banned in a bid to prevent violence at the annual event
Brooklyn’s J’ouvert festival has been held for decades in the pre-dawn darkness on Labor Day, but there was serious talk of canceling the party this year because of violence accompanying the event.
Even after stepped-up security last year, including the installation of light towers that cast blazing light on a party that traditionally begins in the dark, three people were shot in the crowd. Two died.
Last night, a 49-year-old man died after getting shot in the head on Herkimer Place in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn at just before 9pm on Sunday. Three others were injured in separate incidents and are recovering in hospital.
Two NYPD cops observe the parade of revelers as they pass by in incredible, elaborate costumes
Revelers are searched by police officers and have a metal detector passed over them during the Caribbean street carnival
Tens of thousands of costumed, paint-slathered revelers gathered on the streets in the New York borough in the early hours of Monday for the celebration of Caribbean culture which has been plagued by violence in recent years
The result is that this year’s event festival took place with heavy security including an increased NYPD presence, police barricades and metal detectors
A police sign reads ‘no music’ along the route of J’ouvert festival. Thousands of additional officers were on patrol today and policed party areas outside the barriers
They include a 44-year-old man shot in the chest near the parade route, one man shot in the abdomen at Union Street, Crown Heights, following a dispute, another shot in the torso in Crown Heights, who walked to a neighboring hospital.
No arrests have been made.
Police would not confirm whether the shootings were associated with the J’Ouvert celebration.
Carey Gabay, an aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, died after being caught in the crossfire at J’ouvert in 2015
In response, city officials this year changed the start time of J’ouvert’s steel band procession from 4am to 6am and added strict security layers that don’t sit well with some longtime merrymakers.
‘Those of us really involved in J’ouvert are not creating this violence, and we shouldn’t be punished or forced to change,’ said Michael Manswell, a dancer, choreographer and college professor who has attended for decades.
The precautions, he and others predicted, likely won’t dissuade the devout from turning out early. He hoped it would discourage the troublemakers, who he said were people ignorant of the event’s meaning and just looking for an opportunity to create mayhem.
‘I can tell you I’m going out there either way, because I am committed to the mas,’ said Manswell, referring to the costumed performances.
One reveler covers her face with a Trinidad scarf and sunglasses during the parade as she walks alongside cops on the parade route
Revelers are searched and have metal detectors passed over them before entering the parade which draws tens of thousands of costumed celebrants
This year, revelers must enter the route along 12 designated entry points and will have to pass through metal detectors, and no alcohol or backpacks will be allowed
Shootings near the march route have long been a concern, but the violence got renewed attention in 2015, when the aide to Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo was killed by a stray bullet.
Last year, 17-year-old Tyreke Borel was shot and killed and a 72-year-old woman was grazed in the arm. Soon after, a 22-year-old woman, Tiarah Poyau, was shot in the head just a block away and also died.
This year, revelers had to enter the route along 12 designated entry points and pass through metal detector. No alcohol or backpacks were allowed. Thousands of additional officers were on patrol and policed party areas outside the barriers.
Participants say while the event may not have the nostalgic touch, they’re pleased it will go on.
‘It is a part of our cultural heritage,’ said Guy. ‘It is a way to link our past with our present and future and to remind ourselves of who we are.’